Welcome to the High Score Arcade
by Bailey Basham, Messenger Staff Writer
At one point in time, the local grocery store parking lot had nothing on the local arcade — kids could spend hours hanging out with friends and playing games like Ms. Pac-Man, Pong and Galaga, all on just a couple of dollars or less.
That nostalgia of simpler times and having a safe place to go have fun is something that was important to Andrea McEwan when she and her family moved from the Jersey Shore two years ago.
Coming from New Jersey, she was used to being able to take her family to walk the beach and boardwalk, to amusement parks, to trampoline parks, arcades — about anywhere her young sons might want to go. When the family got to Franklin County and discovered that there weren’t many options for family fun, she started thinking. That is when she said she first had the idea for High Score Arcade and Gaming Lounge.
“When we moved our family here, we realized that anytime we wanted to take our kids out, we had to drive about an hour away. There was not really a place for them to hang out locally. We saw a need for a safe, fun place for them, and we thought about different options, but we don’t have any investors — it is just us,” McEwan said. “Once we made the decision to open the arcade, it took about three months of planning and about a month of getting the location ready.”
The arcade opened in early February, and since then, McEwan said the gamers have come in droves. Some come to check out the PlayStation 5, which is still tough to find despite having been released in November 2020, and others flock to the retro classics, like Qbert, Mortal Kombat, NBA Jam and Centipede.
“We have the PS5 and the Xbox1 for people to play Fortnite, Apex, Call of Duty Warzone and most of the newest year’s sports games. We also have two virtual reality rooms where you can try out boxing, shooter games, football and fishing,” she said. “The idea was to have games for people of all ages. That’s why we incorporated retro games with the newest consoles and game titles. We want the parents to be able to play and show their family what they used to play when they were younger, while the kids can show the parents the new style of consoles.”
Play at the arcade is $8 for one hour or $15 to play for the entire day. All the games are set to free play. Gamers can also purchase popcorn, chips, hotdogs and sodas to fuel their play. McEwan said she hopes to add other concessions down the line.
“We are so excited to have our business here in Franklin County and are looking forward to what the future holds for our family and the community,” she said.
High Score Arcade is located at 110 1st Ave., Winchester. To keep up with the arcade, follow their Facebook page at <https://www.facebook.com/HighS...;.